Pakistan Arrests More Afghan Taliban

Update II: I find it interesting that many of the arrests are happening in Tump, near the triangle between Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan. It could be that the TalibanÂ are takingÂ a route through Tump because the mountain passes to the north and east are closed by snow and ice, or it could mean getting across the Pak/Afghan border is actually harder now.Â The other speculation: maybe they are headed to somewhere other than Afghanistan.

Â

Thursday 17 more were arrested trying to enter Iran:

QUETTA, (Online): Law enforcement agencies Thursday arrested seventeen people including six Afghan Refugees in the area of Tump near Pak-Afghan border who were trying to enter into Iran illegally. Police have started investigation after registering the case under Foreign Act.

UPDATE: The Women’s Protection Bill has now passed the Senate in Pakistan, it awaits Musharraf’s signatureÂ to become law.Â

This is a heartening change in Pakistan’s approach to their extremist problem — over the past three days they’ve arrestedÂ 233 Taliban from madrassas in and around Quetta. The difference between this and past round ups is that they are picking up the murder-mullahs and death-Imams this go round. The latest batch noted by the Frontier Post:

QUETTA, (ONLINE): Quetta Police arrested 13 Afghan nationals on the suspicion being Taliban in the area of Pashtoon Abad on Tuesday. According to the Police sources, Police raided in Mitha Chowk, Taroo Chowk and other areas and arrested 13 Afghan Nationals suspected to be associated to Taliban. Police have started investigation after filing the case under the Foreign Act against them.

In another story we see forty more captured:

QUETTA, (Online): Quetta Police have arrested more than 40 suspected Talibans in different activities including a student who came in Quetta for medical treatment on Tuesday. According to SSP Qazi Abdul Wahid, sources told the Police that near four dozen of Talibans are residing in Pashtoon Abad and central area of city where Police raided and arrested 15 Taliban from Kachkak, 4 from Sadar Thana and 28 from Pashtoon Abad area. Police have started investigation after registering the case against them.

The MMA reaction is predictable, much like the Hizb Allah stance in Lebanon:

QUETTA (PPI): Jamiat Ulemae Islam leaders have said that harassment of students of religious schools (madaris) by conducting raids should be stopped or there may be serious consequences of such raids. These leaders including Senator (R) Hafiz Fazal Muhammad, General Secretary Maulana Abdul Qadir Luni, Abdul Aziz Khilji Advocate and others while addressing public meetings in various parts of the Metropolis including Hanna Orak Halqa 65, Kach Nassran Moar, Nawan Killi. They said that deeni madaris (religious schools) are forts of Islam. They have played significant role against conspiracies against Islam in the world. They would continue to play their role in days ahead. They said that Westerners and Europeans have unleashed a propaganda against Islam in the world. Under this situation, labeling terrorism charges against these madaris is an attempt in futile. They said JUI and MMA have openly opposed Anti Islam and Anti Nation decisions of the government at every fora. Women Protection Bill is nothing but to popularise sex free practice in Pakistan. If government is really sincere for women rights. Women have so many problems and if government is really sincere , these problems should be given attention. They demanded that raids on deeni madaris should be stopped forthwith and release of all arrested students

The MMA meanwhile has lost their allies in their threat to resign over passage of the Women’s Protection Bill, as noted by this cartoon:

Â

Â

Â

Â

Â

Â

Â

Â

Â

Â

Â

Â

If you need to understand why it’s important that the Women’s protection bill passes, it’s to stop abuses like this one from The Post:

PIR DI HATTI: A man, in connivance with his brother, cut off his wife’s one leg on suspicion of bad character in the jurisdiction of Basirpur police station, The Post learnt here Wednesday.

The daughter of one Falak Sher Sund, Zaib alias Zaiban, a resident of Kotike Bahawal, was married to her cousin, Muhammad Ahmad alias Bannu, of the same village. Bannu suspected her wife had illicit relations with someone of the area. A couple of days ago, he, with the help of his brother, Muhammad Azam, cut off Zaib’s one leg while she was sleeping. The accused fled the scene after the crime. Later, people of the village also refused to help the woman owing to fear of an influential landlord, Nosher Jan Wattoo. The Imam of the local mosque, Maulvi Fateh Ullah, informed the area people about the incident through loudspeaker.

Later, the father of ill-fated woman, who is a poor man, took her to his home as he had no money to shift her to some hospital for medical treatment. However, a God-fearing person of the area, Tufail, son of Qutab Din, helped the poor man and took the woman to Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, Depalpur, for treatment.

But bad luck followed the poor woman there too as the doctors refused to examine her terming it a police case. Then the father took his daughter to General Hospital Lahore for treatment along with Muhammad Tufail.

The area police have also refused to register a case against the culprits under the orders of Wadera Nosher Jan Wattoo. The eyewitnesses told The Post they saw woman’s leg hanging at the door of her house.

They are on an .asp server, what you have to do is hit the main page Bill, then after each link, go back to main page and refresh before clicking another link. If you are on main page more than a minute or so without clicking a link, it times out. hitting back button/refresh will get you where you need to go.